


Caught Beneath the Landslide

by how_about_no



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, Love/Hate, M/M, Merlin is a Little Shit, POV Merlin, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-05
Updated: 2017-01-27
Packaged: 2018-08-13 05:34:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7964470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/how_about_no/pseuds/how_about_no
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin and Arthur butt heads as soon as they meet, but when Merlin is hired by Uther as Arthur's personal assistant, things quickly spiral out of control.</p><p>or</p><p>“You’re an idiot.” The man said simply, looking at the people who were gathering around them with a growing blush on his cheeks, “You should probably stop there.”<br/>“Stop what?” Merlin pursed his lips, “Putting you in your place? I don’t know, it seems like not many people haven’t done it before.”<br/>The man opened his mouth to reply, crossing his arms, but someone touched his arm and drew his attention to them. It was a young woman, probably his date, with long blonde hair and a tight mouth.<br/>“Arthur,” She said, “Morgana wants you.”<br/>“Arthur.” Merlin repeated dumbly, “You’re Arthur Pendragon?”<br/>“Yes,” Arthur, fucking Arthur Pendragon, raised his eyebrows with a smug smile, “I am.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Poisoned Challace

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is my first attempt at a long merlin fic... I'm trying really hard to capture the characters, but I'm sorry if they aren't exactly right. I should get better as the fic goes on.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

“Imagine it, Merlin.” Will gestured above him from his place lying on the floor, as if Merlin could see what he was picturing on the ceiling, “All the tits you could think of.”

“Well, I can think of quite a few so that’s unlikely.”

“Shut up.” Will groaned, “You ruin everything, honestly.”

“You’re the one that chose a gay man as your best friend.”

“You weren’t gay when I chose you!”

“I’ve been gay since I was born.”

“Whatever.”

Merlin raised an eyebrow at his computer screen, still scrolling through Facebook for anything that was more interesting than his best friend talking about boobs. They were lovely, sure, but Merlin wasn’t even vaguely interested. Honestly, he wasn’t even sure why he let the guy in.

A few hours ago, Will had arrived ranting and raving about a party he was invited to before barging past Merlin an rummaging through his fridge for any and all of his food. He ended up with a peanut butter and celery sandwich. Merlin would’ve objected but that hadn’t gone well last time. He’s not sure he ever properly got the Nutella out of his hair.

They had moved from the kitchen to the living room after that, and Will hadn’t stopped talking since.

“Not only is it a fucking babe-fest, the head honcho of Camelot industry’s son is going to be there.”

“He’s an arse,” Merlin wrinkled his nose, “I heard he beat some guy up while he was drunk because they looked at him funny. Plus, he’s a rich, straight guy, and you know how much I hate those.”

“Have you seen his sister?” Will barrelled on like Merlin hadn’t even spoken, “I swear, she’s the hottest thing to ever walk the earth.”

“She’s also one of the most successful business women to ever walk the earth.” Merlin added, ashamed of his friend’s lack of respect for women, “She’d wipe the floor with you before you even opened your mouth.”

“Who knows?” Will shrugged with some difficulty considering he was still on his back, “Maybe I’m into that.”

“God help you if you are.” Merlin muttered, “Hey, did you know Gwen is getting married? She’s wearing a ring in her new profile picture.”

“Who to?” Will sat up and leant back on his hands.

“Hang on, let me stalk for a moment,” Merlin clicked and leant closer to the screen, “I can’t believe I don’t know about this. We were best friends in university.”

“Friendships change.”

“And yet I can’t get rid of you.” Merlin smirked when Will tried and failed to throw a cushion at him, “Oh, my God,” He gasped, staring at the picture in front of him, “He’s gorgeous.”

“Let me see.” Will shot up and came to Merlin’s side, and they both gaped at the man. He had short brown hair, with kind eyes and chiselled features slightly dusted with stubble.

“If I was standing up, my knees would wobble right now.”

“Men like that make me wish I was gay.”

“Wouldn’t do you any good, he’s not.” Merlin sighed, “Aw, I am happy for her. We’ll have to get in touch with her and meet up for coffee at some point.”

“Coffee?” Will scoffed, “What are we, middle aged?”

“Well we’re certainly not going clubbing, I can tell you that.” Merlin clicked through Gwen’s profile and saw that she was going to an event, “Is that the party you were on about?”

“Yes! Yes!” Will pointed, “Fucking brilliant, you have to come now, Merl, Gwen will be there.”

“Fine.” Merlin’s mouth twisted, “But if I see Arthur Pendragon, I’m leaving.”

“You don’t even know what he looks like.”

“I’ll know him when I see him, Will.” Merlin narrowed his eyes, “I can spot a dick head from a mile away.”

*

Though he was in a suit, Merlin suddenly felt underdressed when they entered the hall. It was a pretty exclusive event, but every guest got to have a plus one. Obviously it was usually a date. Will made it very clear that this was not. Of course, Merlin was already aware of that.

“Well, fuck me sideways in a cowboy had.” Will said in awe, and Merlin looked around to make sure no one heard.

“You know, I would prefer if you kept your weird comments to a minimum,” Merlin said, “I’ve used up all the excuses in the book to excuse you and I’m not feeling creative tonight.” He grabbed a glass of champagne from a passing tray and brought it to his lips with a small smile. Would putting his pinky up be considered too fancy?

“Shut up,” Will scoffed, “I’m plenty classy, Merlin.”

“On the way here you farted into your hand and tried to throw it at me.” Merlin raised his eyebrows, “That’s not even how farts work.”

“I’ve changed my mind.” Will shoved Merlin’s shoulder, making him almost drop the glass, “I’m going back to my apartment and inviting the nice old lady a few doors down to come here since you’re an unappreciative twat.”

“You mean Miss Gray?” Merlin took another sip, “Isn’t she deaf?”

“Blind, actually. Jesus, Merlin, learn my neighbours. Mr Harris is the deaf one.”

“How could I forget? I’m clearly a terrible friend.”

“Damn straight,” Will tilted his head, “Or damn gay. Whichever you prefer.”

“Definitely damn gay.” Merlin took in the room around them. With red and gold dripping from every surface, it reminded him of a castle hall. It felt like there should’ve been people in flowing dresses and tight suits doing the waltz around the centre, where there were only a few kids looking like they were doing the harlem shake.

The curtains were red velvet, and the entrance they had just walked past was draped with a red carpet. You’d think there would be celebrities in every corner with the budget for the party clearly being through the roof. However, it seemed like it was mostly friends and family of whoever was throwing it. None of these people looked like they would have anything to do with someone like Will, so Merlin began to doubt he got the invite in any other way than paying with sex or threatening murder.

Knowing Will, it was probably both.

“Merlin!” Gwen floated over to them, draped in a beautiful, purple silk dress that hung off her curves in a way that even Merlin could appreciate, “I can’t believe it’s you. How long has it been?”

“Too long.” Merlin put his glass down on the nearest table, then pulled the shorter woman into a hug, “It’s great to see you.”

“This is Lance,” Gwen gestured to the man by her side with a fond smile, “He’s my fiancé.”

“Nice to meet you.” Merlin held out a hand and nearly swooned with Lance took it. He hoped there weren’t too many stars in his eyes.

“Likewise.” Lance said with a smile that lit up his whole face. Damn, Gwen had good taste.

“I’m Will, by the way.” He also shook hands with them both, “Merl here didn’t seem to think I needed introducing.”

“I was hoping they wouldn’t realise you were with me.” Merlin smiled at Will’s affronted expression and only just dodged his hit. Of course, it was just his luck that he bumped into someone else. A brick wall by the feel of them, “Oh, I am so-” Merlin cut himself off when he met the man’s eyes.

“You better watch where you’re going,” The man said, his blue eyes filled with rage, “You’ll get yourself hurt.”

“Thanks for the concern but I think I’m okay.” Merlin replied with a tight smile, hoping it didn’t come out as rude as it sounded to his own ears. Honestly he had been a little taken aback by the guy’s appearance, and his tone, but even Merlin knew to not cause a scene unless completely necessary. The man’s blond hair was slicked to the side smoothly, and his grey suit looked more expensive than Merlin’s existence.

“It wasn’t concern,” The man clenched his jaw, “It was a threat.”

“Oh really,” Merlin tilted his head, “Am I meant to be scared, then?”

“A bit.”

“Looks like you’re not as terrifying as you think you are,” Merlin shrugged, “Hope that’s not too much of a blow to your clearly massive ego.”

“Merlin.” Gwen said in warning, but the man was already speaking again.

“You can’t speak to me like that.” He frowned and looked Merlin up and down as if he were something new and foreign that he had never experienced before. Merlin knew there were some people who didn’t often get argued with, but how much of a prat can one guy be?

“Actually, I can,” Merlin tried to look as condescending as possible as he patted the man’s shoulder, “I just did.”

The man looked down at his shoulder in distaste and shock when Merlin removed his hand, then glanced back up with more confusion than anger.

“Do you know who I am?”

“I know you’re a prat,” Merlin laughed, “listen, I bumped into you, apologised, then _you_ decided it was a great idea to threaten someone who has never known what’s good for him since he beat people up twice his size in nursery.”

“You’re an _idiot_.” The man said simply, looking at the people who were gathering around them with a growing blush on his cheeks, “You should probably stop there.”

“Stop what?” Merlin pursed his lips, “Putting you in your place? I don’t know, it seems like not many people haven’t done it before.”

The man opened his mouth to reply, crossing his arms, but someone touched his arm and drew his attention to them. It was a young woman, probably his date, with long blonde hair and a tight mouth.

“Arthur,” She said, “Morgana wants you.”

“Arthur.” Merlin repeated dumbly, “You’re Arthur Pendragon?”

“Yes,” Arthur, fucking _Arthur Pendragon,_ raised his eyebrows with a smug smile, “I am.”

“Oh.” Merlin swallowed around a lump in his throat, “Okay then. That’s- that’s- good for you.”

For a moment, it looked like Arthur was going to say something else, but then he must’ve reconsidered because he was walking away without glancing back a second later.

“Oh, Merlin,” Will shook his head with a grin, “Only you would pick a fight with none other than Arthur Pendragon within ten minutes of getting here.”

“That was _brilliant.”_ Gwen said, hiding giggles behind her hand, “I’ve been waiting so long for someone to knock him down a peg or two.”

“You know him?” Merlin asked, feeling his jaw drop.

“I work for his sister. I’m her personal assistant.” Gwen glanced over to where Arthur was now standing with a woman with jet black hair and cold eyes, “She’s actually quite terrifying sometimes. I’m surprised she invited me.”

“Wait, she’s throwing this party?” Merlin picked up his glass again and downed the contents before turning to Will, “How exactly did you get invites?”

“Well,” Will laughed, “It’s actually quite a funny story. You see-”

“Actually, I don’t want to hear it. I’m leaving.”

“Wait, Merlin, you’ve only just got here.” Gwen clutched his wrist with the puppy dog eyes that got him to be friends with her in the first place during freshers week, “You can’t leave yet.”

“I can feel Arthur glaring at me from here.” Merlin didn’t even have to glance up to know that the man’s eyes were on him. It felt as if a hole was being burned through his forehead.

“Who cares?” Gwen shook her head slightly, “He’s a prick, nothing you haven’t handled before.”

“ _Handled_.” Will repeated, giggling.

“You know,” Merlin commented, “For a straight man, you think about gay sex an awful lot.”

Will just giggled more.

*

Eventually Gwen managed to convince Merlin to go and sit with her and Lance at a table they had claimed for themselves and their friends on the other end of the hall. There were a few people already sat there, and they all smiled when they approached.

“Lance-y,” One man raised his eyebrows, flicking some long brown hair out of his eyes, “You brought eye candy. What’s your name?”

It took a moment for Merlin to realise it was _him_ the man was looking at.

“Um- Merlin.”

“You sure?” The man laughed, “You don’t sound certain. Come on, sit by me so I can find out if that _is_ your name or not.”

“Um-” Merlin hesitated, but Will shoved him in that direction and he took a seat by the man, feeling his cheeks burning red.

“I’m Gwaine, by the way.” The man held out his left hand, the right almost touching Merlin’s shoulder where his arm was draped across the back of his chair.

“I definitely _am_ Merlin.” Merlin took the offered hand and quickly let go again, feeling himself fall into his awkward self when around someone interested in him. Why did he have to be such a blushing mess? Gwaine didn’t seem bothered, simply smiling and turning to speak to the man next to him, who Merlin recognised as Gwen’s brother, Elyan. He hadn’t changed much since Merlin last remembered seeing him, his eyes still alight with humour even when no one was laughing.

Content to just listen to the conversations around him, Merlin rested his chin in his hand and watched everyone interact. Gwen was laughing at something Lance had said, leaning heavily into his side. Will was clearly telling a completely made up story to Gwaine and Elyan, who were listening politely but smiling as if they knew it was bullshit. Looking around the room, it seemed like everyone was getting along, apart from Merlin.

His gaze drifted to the top table without him noticing, and Arthur glared harder than he already was when Merlin met his eyes. Deciding that being a little shit was more entertaining than pretending he wasn’t looking, Merlin wiggled his fingers in a dainty wave and smiled extra sweetly. Arthur crossed his arms and looked away, slouching more in his seat which earned a scathing look from his sister.

The other people sitting on that table seemed to be getting along just fine. One of them Merlin recognised as Leon, the star of an extremely successful detective show filmed in the Pendragon studios. He was talking to another man who seemed inappropriately dressed for this kind of event. To be fair, Merlin doubted anyone was complaining about the ripped off sleeves because of the amount of bicep that was showing. Merlin certainly didn’t mind.

Morgana was on her phone, scrolling through it with an intensely bored expression, and Merlin could almost hear her nail clicking obnoxiously as she did. The only person who didn’t seem to be doing anything at all was Arthur. He was still slouched in his chair, glaring at the table, probably imagining Merlin’s head while he was doing so.

Merlin highly doubted he was the only reason for the little prince being in such a foul mood, but didn’t want to underestimate his petulance. It was a shame, really. He was gorgeous, then ruined it when he opened his mouth. Actually, he ruined it with his mouth closed too. Maybe he would look nicer when he was asleep. Not even Arthur Pendragon could ruin that peace.

“Oh, Merlin!” Gwen interrupted Merlin’s train of thought and he turned to her with a forced smile, “I was just telling everyone about your work. You are still working with Gaius?”

“Yeah, I am.” Merlin twisted a glass with his fingers as he spoke, “He’s been working on some breakthrough medicines that I can’t really talk about.”

“I love a man who works with confidential information.” Gwaine grinned, almost leering at Merlin in a way that made him want to lean in the opposite direction.

“It’s not really confidential,” Merlin shrugged, “I just don’t like to tell people things that might get their hopes up.”

“That’s fair.” Lance nodded reasonably, then asked Merlin another question about himself. It went on like that for the rest of the night, with food here and there to set a steady pace. Merlin found himself enjoying the company, getting along with everyone far better than he expected to. Lance had a dry humour that he appreciated, Elyan was just as cheeky as Merlin remembered him, Gwaine was a laugh when he wasn’t being overly flirtatious, and Gwen was being her usual, kind self. Will and Merlin seemed to just blend in with them. It was nice, for once, to be in the company of new people.

They were just getting up to leave when Merlin saw a waiter slip a suspicious looking powder into a drink. Merlin frowned, watching them place it on a tray with some others and walk over to the top table. Without hesitation, he excused himself and followed, winding through people who were saying their goodbyes and shrugging on expensive coats.

The person reached the table, and all Merlin could think of was that he couldn’t let some poor innocent person get drugged. What if it wasn’t a drug? Well, then Merlin would make a fool of himself in front of very important people that he would never see again.

Deciding it was worth the risk, he grabbed the glass that he knew had the powder in it and started talking.

“Sorry, I’m parched. You don’t mind do you?” He asked the waiter, watching their eyes widen in panic and the sweat start to bead on their neck, “I mean, It’s just normal champagne, right? Nothing special that’s meant to for someone.”

“Actually,” Arthur spoke up, glaring a hole into the side of Merlin’s head, “I think he was handing that to me. So-”

“You don’t want to drink this.” Merlin said with certainty, but Arthur wasn’t having it. He stood up and held out his hand.

“Don’t make me take it off you.”

“Well, I didn’t want to say this but-” Merlin looked at the waiter, who was shuffling away, having dropped the tray onto the table a moment before. He grabbed the man by the elbow and pulled him back- “You were about to get drugged.”

“Excuse me?” Arthur gaped, and the rest of the people around the table went silent. Merlin took a moment to appreciate Leon’s eyes on him. He was the closest thing to a celebrity that he had got attention from.

“You heard me.”

“I did.” Arthur said slowly, “That’s a big accusation to make. Do you have any proof?”

“I saw him put a powder in it.” Merlin nodded towards the man that was struggling in his grip. His face was bright red now, and sweat was dripping down the side of his face. He reminded Merlin of a hot pig.

“I didn’t.” The man said unconvincingly, but apparently it was only unconvincing to Merlin.

“You should drink it.” A man whom Merlin had not noticed said. He had dark hair down to his shoulders, and a mean face that Merlin already wanted to punch. For some reason, he reminded him of Snape.

“What?” Both Merlin and Arthur said at the same time.

“Agravaine,” Arthur said disbelievingly, “We can’t make him drink something he thinks is poisoned.”

“We could get him immediate medical attention if needed.” Morgana said smoothly, tapping her fingernails on the table, “He made the accusation, so he can prove it.”

“You can’t be-” Arthur started, but Merlin was already drinking. He had done a lot of stupid things in his life, but this had to be by far the stupidest. This year, anyway. To his right, Arthur was watching him with wide eyes as his hand went slack on the waiter’s arm and he slipped away. His vision started to blur, and the world around him tipped, until Merlin was leaning against the tiled wall that had come up to meet him.

Wait, no, that was the floor.

Suddenly feeling tired down to his bones, Merlin closed his eyes and let sleep overcome him.

*

There was beeping to his right, and snoring on his left when Merlin started to wake up. It spoke volumes about his and Will’s friendship that he could recognise the man from his snoring.

His throat was dry and sandy, and when Merlin curled his tongue is cracked and felt like the surface of a jagged rock. With a groan, he opened his eyes to see he was in a hospital bed. There were hushed voices outside, but by the sound of it, they were slowly rising in volume.

“I will see him,” One of the voices said loudly, “I don’t bloody care if I’m not family he saved my life and I want to see if it cost him his!”

“I’m sorry sir,” Another voice said, high and female, “We can’t let you in. It’s the rules. Until he wakes up and can consent himself, no one but his emergency contact and immediate family are allowed in.”

“You have _got_ to be kidding me!” The first voice shouted, and they sounded familiar, but Merlin couldn’t put his finger on it.

He looked around himself, and tried to piece together what happened. They were at a party, and were about to leave when- _oh-_ the powder. Merlin smacked his lips together and tasted something bitter. He _drank_ it. God, what was he thinking?

When Will woke up he would definitely berate Merlin for being such a self-sacrificing idiot. It was in his nature. A few years ago, he had jumped into some river rapids to try and save a dog, only to need saving himself. Then again, no one could criticise him for that because the dog wouldn’t have survived if Merlin hadn’t held it above water for as long as he did.

This was the same. Apart from the fact that he didn’t save a dog, he saved a royal prat with a God complex.

Brilliant.

A moment later, the nurse that Merlin assumed had been talking to the man outside peeked her head in. She smiled when she saw that Merlin was awake and stepped into the room, closing the door quietly behind herself.

“Hey,” She said, moving to the foot of the bed to pull out Merlin’s papers, “You’ve had quite the night, but you’ll be fine. I won’t bore you with details, but the drug you consumed was a very heavy dosage of a common date rape drug, gamma hydroxybutyric acid, that could have killed you had you not got immediate medical attention.”

“Okay.” Merlin said slowly, his throat closed up, “Can I have some water?”

“Sure.” The woman quickly poured him a glass from the jug of water in the corner of the room and handed it to him, “There’s a man outside who wanted to see you, but I had to wait until you were awake for permission.”

“Who?”

“He said his name is Arthur.” The woman replied smoothly and Merlin nearly spat out his drink.

“Arthur is here to see me?”

“Yes,” The nurse’s smile widened, clearly amused by his reaction, “He is. Should I let him in or tell him to leave?”

“Um-” Merlin thought about his current state, and whether Arthur could have come to beat him up for thank him. Surely they would stop him if he tried to suffocate Merlin, and Will was here, even though he slept like the dead and probably wouldn’t wake up if a bomb went off outside- “Sure. Let him in.”

“Sure thing.” The nurse took the glass from him once it was empty and placed it on the bedside table that Merlin probably would have been able to reach himself. With another smile, which Merlin was quite honestly starting to find irritating, she went back out of the room and spoke quietly for a moment. A second later, Arthur was slamming into the room with a wide eyes. He quickly schooled his expression when he saw Merlin and coughed into his hand.

“I see you’re alive.” He said, putting his hands into his jean pockets.

“Seems so,” Merlin smiled at how awkward Arthur was being. It made him almost proud that he was the cause of it, when the man seemed so sure of himself the night before, “How long have I been out?”

“Just overnight.” Arthur shrugged. He looked at the papers by the end of the bed and raised his eyebrows, “Merlin? What kind of a name is that?”

“A unique one,” Merlin batted his eyelashes, “For a very special boy.”

“You must’ve had trouble in high school.”

“Yeah, I learned to handle prats like you a long time ago.” Merlin wiped the back of his hand over his eyes and felt the sleep in them crumble. Gross.

“Bet not many of them required you to save their life by drinking poison meant for them.” Arthur’s gaze went soft, and Merlin found himself short of breath.

“Two or three.” He shrugged, trying to break the tension. Will’s obnoxiously loud snore in the next moment helped with that too.

“What- where- who is-” Will suddenly jolted awake, looking around himself like he wasn’t sure where he was. His hands went up as if ready to karate chop the nearest threat, then he quickly dropped them when he saw Arthur, “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I- uh- came to thank Merlin.”

“Right.” Will narrowed his eyes into a glare, “By the way, Merlin,” He said without looking away from Arthur, the other man shuffling uncomfortably, “Gaius called and said he’s been called away for the next few months.”

“Few months?” Merlin yelled, “He can’t go away for a few months I’ll be broke!”

“Merlin?” The nurse came in again, “There’s a man here saying he’s with Arthur.”

“Sure, might as well let everyone in.” Merlin shrugged, and the nurse left.

A minute later, a man in a fitted, black suit, small eyes and greying hair came in with a phone to his ear.

“Arthur,” He said, his voice low and commanding, “We need to go. I have a meeting in fifteen minutes and I said you would be there.”

“Yes, father.” Arthur said formally, and Merlin caught Will’s eye as they both mouthed ‘Father!’.

“Thank you,” Uther FUCKING Pendragon said to Merlin, without taking his phone away from his ear, “For saving my son’s life. I must repay you somehow.”

“How about a job?” Will suggested, and Merlin glared at him at the same time Arthur did.

“That won’t be necessary.” Arthur shook his head, a look of pure terror in his eyes at the prospect of working with Merlin, probably. Merlin shared the sentiment. Just because he had come to thank him, didn’t mean Arthur wasn’t a dick.

“Yeah, I don’t-”

“Nonsense.” Uther waved a hand, then muttered something into the phone before addressing the room again, “You can become Arthur’s personal assistant. He has lost his recently.”

“Father!”

“That really isn’t-!”

“You’ll start on Monday.” Uther said simply, ignoring their protests, “Come along, Arthur.”

“Yes, father.” Arthur pushed through gritted teeth, and shot a disdainful look Merlin’s way before following Uther out of the room without a backwards glance.

“Will!” Merlin shouted, throwing his pillow at him, “What the hell?!”

“You’re welcome.” The man replied, hugging the pillow as if it were a gift instead of a weapon.

On Monday, Merlin was going to start working for one of the biggest arse holes he had ever met. Perfect.


	2. The First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merlin is starting his first day as Arthur's PA. Surely it wouldn't be that eventful, or maybe it would.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry it has taken me so long to update. I haven't been a good place, like, mentally, and I've been consumed by uni work, but now I'm back! Probably not better than ever!
> 
> Hope you enjoy this new instalment of modern medieval boyfriends.

Even though Merlin wasn’t entirely sure what a PA did, he wasn’t going to pass up the job opportunity. Sure, he would be working for the biggest prat this side of the milky way, but, as Will had so delicately put, he needed the _fucking dosh._ That morning, it had been hectic as hell trying to find something appropriate to wear. As an assistant to a scientist, he didn’t exactly wear a suit every day. That meant his best option was a dark blue shirt and a red tie, along with a cheap black blazer. It would do, probably.

To say the Pendragon building was daunting was an understatement. It felt almost as if it was judging all the other buildings, smug about how many grand windows it had and how tall it was compared to its measly neighbours. Honestly, it wasn’t much of a surprise that the building owned by the smuggest family in the country also shared that trait. If anything it was the least unexpected thing Merlin had seen that morning, the most being a squirrel and a pigeon having an all-out fight in the trees in the park by Merlin’s flat complex.

That had made Merlin’s week, and he had texted Will about it immediately. Of course, the man simply replied with the poop emoji. That didn’t even make the list of unexpected things. He was becoming predictable in his old age.

Only a woman bumping rudely into his shoulder reminded Merlin that he was in fact meant to _enter_ the building he was working in. Curious customs.

Luckily, Uther Pendragon’s secretary had sent him an email with all the details of the job, including a contract and his working hours. Merlin would say it was the easiest job he had ever got, apart from the fact that he had to drink poison to get it. The lack of interview was great, though.

The lift was cramped and stuffy when Merlin used the temporary key card provided by the front desk to open it. He was almost tempted to say he’d wait for the next one, but the time was slowly creeping towards ‘late’ o’clock, and he really didn’t feel like pissing off his (dickhead) boss on the first day. For some reason, Merlin already had the idea that Arthur was going to make his life hell anyway.

Arthur, _Arthur,_ what a mystery that man was. Merlin had done the obligatory google search of the bastard last night, merely raising an eyebrow at everything he found. Party animal, lothario, womanizer, smart business man, men’s health advocate. None of it was a surprise. He looked just as good in his pictures as in real life, which was a real kick in the nuts for Merlin. Why did such a pretty face have to be cursed with the soul of an ass hole? He was probably a prince in his last life, entitled and just as annoying as he was now.

The lift doors slid open on Merlin’s floor, and he practically fell out, leaving all of the people behind him glaring as if he had shot their children in front of them. Probably a harsh analogy, but appropriate, Merlin thought as he twirled around and saluted them all with a smile before turning again and heading toward the office doors at the back of the large room. He was told to go to Arthur first, then his desk. Apparently the idiot needed to know Merlin was there. Even though he would prefer it, minimal interaction with his boss was probably unlikely.

Politely, and with a lot of grace, Merlin knocked on the cloudy glass door and tried to squint to see through it. It was futile.

“Enter!” Arthur’s voice boomed out, and Merlin rolled his eyes. Only Arthur would say ‘enter’ instead of ‘come in’.

“Hi,” Merlin opened the door with a bright smile, and saw Arthur sat at his desk surrounded by papers, his suit looking rumpled already even though it was only nine in the morning. Just before nine, actually, Merlin was early, “I- uh- I’m Merlin-”

“I know who you are, you idiot.” Arthur hissed. Clearly his rudeness was just a part of his personality, not down to a bad mood. Unfortunate, really, “Your desk is outside, to the right. I’ll comm you if I need anything,” He said all of it without looking up, and Merlin was almost tempted to click his fingers, “Dismissed.”

“Dismissed.” Merlin repeated quietly, sighing, “Yes, sir.”

Arthur just grunted in reply and Merlin wanted to smack him. Would it hurt him to be polite for one second? Actually, it would probably bruise his ego somewhat, so maybe he would leave it for now. There was time to berate the man.

Two hours later, when Merlin had taken to throwing tic tacs into his mouth where he was leant back in his wheely chair out of boredom, the comm on his desk buzzed.

“Get in here.” Is all Arthur said, and Merlin rolled his eyes before crunching down on his tic tac and jumping to his feet. His blazer lay forgotten on the back of his chair, and his tie was loosened, but he found himself not caring. Well, not ‘found’ himself. He just didn’t care, and knew it.

“You called for me?” He opened the door without knocking to find Arthur frowning at his computer.

“I need you to do something for me.”

“I guessed.” Merlin drawled sarcastically and Arthur’s eyes flicked up to his, then down to his attire.

“You know you’re in an office, don’t you? Put a blazer on and for God’s sake do your top button up,” Arthur tutted when all Merlin did was look down at himself, then got up and walked over. Unthinkingly, Merlin flinched, “I’m not going to hit you, you idiot.”

“No, but you want to.”

“I’m not responding to that.” Arthur muttered, then attacked the buttons near Merlin’s neck and tightened his tie to the point of strangulation.

“Jesus!” Merlin yelled, “Is that really necessary?”

“Extremely.” Arthur smiled faux sweetly, “Now, I need you to deliver this to my father on the top floor.”

He held out a small box, wrapped neatly with a bow. Merlin raised an eyebrow.

“Are you giving him a present?”

Arthur levelled him with a blank look, looking like he’d known Merlin for years and was just _done_ with his shenanigans. It wasn’t Merlin’s fault he was constantly suspicious. Well, suspicion isn’t the right word for it. It was more like morbid curiosity. He stuck his nose in where it didn’t belong, then was always surprised when it backfired. To be perfectly honest, it was probably a trait he absorbed from Will’s personality. Why couldn’t he have the guy’s lying technique instead?

“No,” Arthur rolled his eyes, then turned to walk back to his desk, “I just bought one from him for someone else.”

“Can’t your father get presents for himself?” Merlin said, gracefully putting his foot in his mouth, “He’s loaded and probably has a million personal assistants.”

“Deliver the package,” Arthur said slowly, glaring a hole into Merlin’s forehead. He was almost tempted to touch it to see if it felt warm. Shaking his head, Merlin quickly left the room and headed for the lift. What did he ever do to make Arthur hate him so much? Well, it might have something to do with the argument. Then again, Merlin would’ve thought he’d have made up for that by, you know, nearly dying. Apparently not.

“Top floor,” Merlin said to the other person in the lift, then did a double take. Long hair, stubble, cheeky smile, “Gwaine?”

“Merlin,” Gwaine forwent a handshake and pulled Merlin into a hug, just barely not crushing the box for Uther, “So good to see you,” He patted Merlin’s shoulder and grinned, “So, you’re working here now? Thought nearly dying would make you avoid this place. Anything associated with the bloke you got hurt for.”

“Yeah, well, I’m out of a job and this has pretty good pay.”

“What are you doing, then?”

“Arthur’s personal assistant,” Merlin laughed at Gwained expression, “I know. He’s not the nicest boss and this is only my first day.”

“He’s a pompous prick. That isn’t going to change the longer you work here,”

“Didn’t you say you worked at the stables on the other side of town?” Merlin frowned, watching the floors go up, wondering when Gwaine would be getting off, “What are you doing here?”

“Suspicious one, aren’t you?” Gwaine flirted, “I’m here to see Percival, my boyfriend.”

“Oh, boyfriend?” Merlin’s eyebrows raised in surprise.

“Sorry, honey,” Gwaine winked, “I know I’m a flirt, but I’m firmly taken. You see the guy the other night at the table of asswipes? Biceps the size of your pretty little face.”

“Oh!” Merlin had a perfect image of those biceps in his head, “They were-” He sighed wistfully- “impressive.”

“Too right,” Gwaine breathed a laugh as the lift pinged. Not the top floor. He smiled at Merlin brightly, “See you later. I’ll text you some time.”

“You don’t have my number.”

“I have my ways!” Gwaine threw over his shoulder, and Merlin couldn’t help but laugh. There was something about him that reminded Merlin of Will. It was probably his constant confidence, laced with sarcasm. Then again that was a trait he shared with them both. Maybe less of the confidence, more of the sarcasm.

The lift doors slid closed, and Merlin let out a breath. Now the nerves set in.

Uther Pendragon was a _terrifying_ man. He was all emotionless facial expressions, to the point attitude, and superiority. How one man could contain so much ego was beyond Merlin. He ran half of the country with the number of media outlets he owned, and any actor, actress, scriptwriter, or journalist was dying to work for him. The fact that Merlin was about to walk into his office should be an honour. Instead, he felt dread.

God knows what the man would do if he stumbled over his words or dropped the package.

The doors opened on the top floor.

It looked more like a flat than the top floor of an office building. There was a red leather sofa towards the left of the room facing a huge flat screen TV that made Merlin’s jaw drop. It was currently playing Camelot TV. Right now, the detective show that made the channel’s name was playing. How it was still going after ten years, Merlin had no idea.

The doors started closing again so Merlin quickly jumped out and looked around the room for a door to Uther’s office. His eyes scanned the room, and saw even more ridiculously expensive décor. Apart from the red leather sofa, the place looked like a medieval palace. There was a giant, intricately patterned rug on the floor, and a chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The whole thing looked so mismatched and inappropriately fancy.

Merlin wouldn’t be surprised if Uther lived up here.

There were three doors around the room, but none of them had signs on them. Most likely at least one of them was a bedroom.

“Okay,” Merlin whispered to himself, “Let’s try this,” He pointed at the first door, “Eenie,” Second door, “Meanie,” Third door, “Miney,” First door, “Mo,” He continued the rhyme and eventually settled on the first door, “Right then.”

He marched over and knocked on the door. After a moment of no one answering, he tried the handle, and opened it slightly. Bathroom.

Onto door two.

“Called it,” Merlin punched the air in celebration. Bedroom, “Third door it is.”

He steeled himself, and knocked on the last door.

“Enter,” Merlin almost scoffed at Uther’s king-like command.

“I have this from Arthur,” Merlin held the gift out, his hand shaking. He mentally scolded himself and tried to keep it still.

“Put it on the desk,” Uther nodded to Merlin’s left, and he jolted to obey. Dammit. Merlin was just about to skedaddle when Uther spoke again, “Oh, and Merlin.”

“Yes?”

“Put a blazer on.”

“Yes, sir.”

Uther just hummed in reply, and Merlin ran, his heart in his throat.

*

“Your father is _terrifying,”_ Merlin said instead of hello when he was called back into Arthur’s office later that day, “What is it with old men and their incredible ability to scare the crap out of me? It’s really quite impressive. Maybe it’s the years of practise. They’ve perfected the glare and the dismissiveness.”

“Are you done?” Arthur said after a moment of silence, still looking at the page he was scribbling on, and when Merlin nodded, he continued, “I need you to get me a coffee, and fetch Morgana. I recommend you get Gwen on the phone and have her send my sister over.”

“Okay,” Merlin shook his head, “I really don’t understand it, though. Does he live up there? There’s a sofa, and a bedroom, and-”

“Were you snooping?” Arthur finally stopped writing, and looked up from his desk, his face extremely disapproving.

“You didn’t tell me which door his office was!” Merlin waved a hand, “And thank you for saying ‘snooping’. It definitely wasn’t one of the words I thought I’d ever hear come out of your mouth.”

“How about these words,” Arthur put his pen down and leant forward, “Get. Out.”

“Yes sir,” Merlin saluted sloppily and turned on his heel. Call Gwen, get Morgana. And a coffee. Not too hard.

*

“Hey, Gwen!” Merlin shouted, after ten minutes of trying to find Gwen’s name in the business’s database, “Could you let Morgana know that Arthur wants to see her, like right now? He asked me about half an hour ago but I’ve had a bit of trouble with, well, everything.”

“They really throw you in the deep end,” Gwen’s smile was audible, and Merlin laughed.

“You could say that,” Merlin twirled the phone cord between his fingers, “Will you be coming with her?”

“Yes,” Gwen laughed, “She couldn’t go anywhere without her purse poodle.”

“She calls you that?” Merlin cursed quietly when he got his fingers stuck, and tried to detangle them without panicking.

“No, it’s something me and Lance came up with,” Gwen said, “Tell Arthur we’ll be over in about ten minutes.”

“Will do,” Merlin was thankful when he could put the phone down, and went about trying to get his fingers out from the demon wire.

*

“Oh, my God,” Merlin looked at all the buttons on the coffee machine in horror, “What kind of fucked up dystopian future is this?”

“Struggling?” A smiling girl with blonde hair asked him.

“A little,” Merlin admitted, blushing in embarrassment, “Could you-?”

“Sure,” The girl joined him in front of the coffee machine and proceeded to give him a lesson on how to make Arthur Pendragon a cup of coffee. Thank God for kind human beings.

*

A few moments later, Merlin was putting the cup down on Arthur’s desk, damn proud of himself for achieving everything he was asked to do. Granted, it wasn’t much, but that coffee machine looked like it belonged on a space ship, not in a crappy office in the middle of England.

“Morgana should be here in a few minutes,” Merlin said, already moving to leave as Arthur took the first sip of the coffee.

“What is this?” Arthur’s face screwed up in disgust, and Merlin opened his mouth to answer ‘coffee’, but thankfully Arthur continued before he could, “Did you put any sugar in this?”

“No,” Merlin said slowly, not quite sure why this was such a dramatic event. Arthur was acting like a little kid that was being forced to eat vegetables.

“I’m not having bitter coffee, Merlin,” Arthur slammed the cup back down, and Merlin was quite impressed by the fact that none of the coffee sloshed out and over his boss’s hand. That was a skill that Merlin never acquired, “Get me some sugar before I pour this over your head.”

“How much?” Merlin asked, stepping backwards towards the door when Arthur’s glare went quickly from ‘I don’t like you’ to ‘I’m going to murder your entire family and make you watch’.

“Six sachets,” Arthur said, “And be quick about it, I don’t want the coffee to get cold.”

“Six?” Merlin gaped, “That’s very vanilla of you.”

“Merlin!” Arthur shouted, finally giving in to his instincts and throwing a stapler at Merlin’s head. He only just dodged it, and quickly left before any other office appliances could be flinged at him.

When he got back to his desk, Merlin slipped on his blazer just in case the King, which is what he had decided to call Uther, came to see Arthur. It was unlikely, but Merlin wasn’t ready to lose this job. Or be beheaded. Both seemed likely options.

He practically ran to the kitchen to grab some sugar, simply scooping up a handful and running back to Arthur’s office.

“Here,” Merlin swung open the door, and nearly had a heart attack when he saw that Arthur wasn’t alone, “Oh,” Both Morgana and Gwen were now looking at him, amused, but Arthur was still looking at a piece of paper, “Hello.”

“Hello,” Morgana smiled, but it seemed more like the kind of expression that a cat would make before killing its pray rather than a friendly welcome, “Merlin, right?”

“Right.”

“You’re the one that drank the poison for my brother, here,” Morgana turned towards him, and he swallowed, still holding the door handle in his hand, “That was very,” She seemed to consider the words, moving her tongue over her teeth, “brave of you.”

“Thank you,” Merlin felt a little unsettled by how piercing her eyes were. Could eyes stab people? Merlin might have to invest in some research for that because he was pretty sure that he was being literally stabbed right now.

“Morgana, leave the poor boy alone, you’re scaring him,” Arthur gave his sister a warning glance, then looked at Merlin expectantly.

“Oh,” Merlin quickly stepped into the room and dropped the sugar sachets on Arthur’s desk, “There you go.”

Arthur looked at him for a moment, like he was trying to figure him out, before turning to his sister again. Merlin heard the door close on the other side of the room and looked at it mournfully. He couldn’t just slip out without anyone noticing. That door was _loud._

“This is ridiculous,” Arthur waved the piece of paper he had been looking at, “You simply can’t ask for this much. He especially won’t like that you’re using Morgause, for starters.”

“What’s wrong with Morgause?” Morgana asked, but she didn’t seem to expect an answer, “It’s what I am asking for. It is what I am _demanding._ He can’t keep me in here when I am worth much more.”

“You’re worth a lot, Morgana, I know,” Arthur said placatingly, “But you’re not worth this much. _I’m_ not even worth this much.”

“So, you’re saying you’re definitely worth more than me.”

“That’s _not_ what I’m saying-” Merlin tried to move towards the door as Arthur and Morgana argued, and Gwen raised her eyebrows at him, looking like she was holding in a laugh. He held a finger to his lips, and so did she. His hand was barely touching the doorknob when Arthur spoke loudly.

“Merlin,” He said, and Merlin closed his eyes. So close, yet so far, “What would you do?”

“Sorry?” Merlin said, and Morgana looked between them in shock.

“You’re asking _him_?” She spat, “He’s just a PA.”

“If you were about to be in charge of a large business,” Arthur continued as if neither of them had spoken, “And someone close to you wanted to branch away from it as soon as you did, taking 50% of said business with them, what would you do?”

“I’m not really business savvy-” Merlin started, but Morgana loudly interrupted him.

“He doesn’t have any idea what’s going on here!”

“Merlin,” Arthur looked genuine for the first time since the hospital. He was looking at Merlin as if he was an equal, not just his assistant, “Would you give away half of your company to someone who has never run one?”

“No,” Merlin said after a moment, “I wouldn’t risk it.”

Arthur nodded, and Merlin knew he had given the right answer. Why his opinion even mattered, Merlin had no idea. After a moment of silence, Arthur turned to Morgana with raised eyebrows. The woman in question huffed, glaring at Arthur then moving it to Merlin. He swallowed. Clearly, she had inherited Uther’s terrifying eyes.

“Rewrite this with 20%,” Arthur handed Morgana back the piece of paper and gestured to the door. Quickly, Merlin opened it and nearly reeled back when Morgana stormed past him, creating a wave of air in her midst.

“She’s-” Merlin considered his words, trying to think of something that wasn’t offensive.

“A witch,” Arthur finished for him, deflated behind his desk.

“I was going to say scary, but that works too,” Merlin closed the door, and watched Arthur’s throat as he gulped down his coffee like it was the only water in the middle of a desert, “Is she always like that?”

“Now she is,” Arthur put down the cup with a slam, and stared at it as he spoke, “She didn’t used to be.”

“I can’t imagine her as anything other than a terrifying business woman who cuts people’s throats with her high heels,” To Merlin’s surprise, Arthur laughed at that. It didn’t sound obnoxious or fake. It was just a laugh. A very nice laugh, mind you. Merlin shook himself out of the train of thought when Arthur started talking.

“That should be all I need for today,” Arthur said, “Just photocopy these, take them to Guinevere, and you can go home.”

With that, Arthur turned back to his computer, and blocked Merlin out. Taking his leave, Merlin wondered if every day would be like this. He wasn’t sure if he hoped for it or prayed that it would be different.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you guys think, and feel free you give me a kick up the butt if I take that long again.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think!  
> tumblr- girlsf0rgirls


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